New Listing

Just listed this place the owner is relocating to a new job in a new city. So this place is priced to sell! Cat and paste the link below for more info!

http://mikefogle.com/property-search/detail/?agentmlsid=622701&listingid=291954&mlsregionid=3&listtype=1,%202,%203,%204,%205,%206,%207

Unrepresented Buyers

I had an open house yesterday and a guy came through to look at the place who didn't have an agent and didn't want one. He was only interested in seeing the homes I had for sell and that's it. Other wise he was going to deal with the listing agent directly. I assume he is doing this because he thinks he can save some money by not having a realtor. He is wrong!

By purchasing a house without a realtor representing you as a buyer then you put your trust into a listing agent you know nothing about. Also you trust that the listing agent is going to best represent you and the seller at the same time. To me it seems like there would have to be some sort of conflict of interest here. The seller and the listing agent could be best friends from childhood for all you know and have your best interest on the back burner.

Another advantage of using a buyers agent is they have knowledge of the market they represent. They can give you information about the home, like what it has sold for in the past and how long its been listed. They can even tell you what comparable properties in the area have sold for.

But if you do decide not to have an agent represent you please purchase one of my listings. I will make double!! The listing agent almost always makes double when an unrepresented buyer purchases the house because then they become that persons buyers agent and get a double whammy on the commission.

Choosing A Mortgage Broker

Just some advice for when your choosing a mortgage broker to purchase your new place. I would strongly suggest getting a referral either from your agent (me) or a friend. I would strongly suggest not to do an online deal with a person who you have never meet and hasn't even set foot in the state your wishing to purchase a home in. I have seen people go online get approved for a loan and the broker gave them a preaproval letter with the hopes that he could actually get it done. This broker has nothing to lose if he can't follow through on his commitment to you so he just crosses his fingers and hopes for the best. You see if he is in California for instance and your here in Kentucky and he messes your deal all up its fine for him. Because he has no ties to Kentucky and you can tell everyone you know that Joe in California did a terrible job on your mortgage.

However if you choose to use someone local they depend on your referrals and have a knowledge of the local market. They know who all the good closing attorneys are (Colleen Balderson) and can even give you directions to her office. They know if they do a poor job for you then that could really hurt their business to have a local agent and a local home buyer telling all their friends about their poor performance. Not so with some stranger in an entire different time zone.

Its Warming Up!

Its no tropical heatwave outside or anything but the snow has melted and the sun has been out some and houses are starting to move! The weather is finally bearable and people are getting out and looking at houses. I have four buying clients right now that are keeping me busy and I really think that they will all be in their new homes in the next couple of months.

Traditionally summer and spring are the hot times for Real Estate but with the government issued tax credits I think late winter should be a big hit. Before we knew the tax credit would be extended we really saw a busy fall with people rushing to beat the November 31st deadline. Now that it has been extended on to April 30Th I can see another big push coming shortly. You may want to consider listing your house before you miss out on this buying frenzy!

Preferred Vender's

In the upper left hand corner I will be posting links of preferred vender's. I'm still working it out but it should be a big help to some of you clients and make the closing of your home go much smoother. Sorry about the lack of post lately but I plan to be picking up the slack soon.

Lease Option

I have an exucutive home listed in a the highlands area that is offered for $399,999 or you can lease the property for $2,300 a month. It has five bedrooms and 3,650 square feet of living space the kitchen has been refinished and its move in ready.

To List or Not to List.

Lots of people I have talked to are waiting until the holiday season is over before they put their house on the market. The mindset is that the next month or two of the calender year is just a dead period that no one ever buys or sells in. But I'm here to tell you that, that's not always the case. I have sold several houses this season and know people are still out looking. Lots of times people that are thinking of moving to the area are doing so to be closer to family. They are often out looking at houses while they are in town visiting family for the holidays. With the $6,500 tax credit for home sellers ending in April, time is of the essence. So my advice to you is get your home ready for the market and get it listed before you miss out on the tax credit and miss out on a rare market that has a selling season extending on into the holidays.